Is custom manufacturer order confusing for users ?

I have an eshop that has in the menu a list of manufacturers available on the website. The default order for them is alphabetical, but due to marketing reasons the owner asked that several manufacturer should be first in the list.

For me this is a little confusing, having found my self searching for a manufacturer in the place it should be in alphabetical order only to find it at the top after some time.

What do you guys think, is this confusing or is it just me.